Hastings Drive-In Theater at Highway
6 & South Wabash Ave. opened in 1949.
Ground breaking for the drive-in was held on February 12, 1949.
Opening ads for the drive-in were in the May, 19, 1949 addition of
the Hastings Daily Tribune. In April of 1951, new playground
facilities were installed. Hastings Drive-in Theater was sold
by its original owner in 1984. The new owners kept the theater
running for about a year. It was closed down permanently
around 1985.

The Drive-in was only open on Thursday, Friday
and Saturday nights. Thursday night was family night - which
was better known as Buck night. On Buck night admission was $ 1.00 per vehicle.

How many of you remember our trips to the
concession stand when we had money to spend? We could buy hot dogs,
burgers, candy, cotton candy & pop. If we had enough money, we
could even order pizza which they would bring out to our car when it was ready. If a bunch of girls went together
to the movie,
they usually brought their own popcorn & drinks from home.

Some of the kids from our class tried to sneak
in friends by hiding them in their trunk. After they
paid the admission fee, they drove to the back, turned off
their car lights and let the kids out of the trunk. Once their
friends were seated in the car, they would proceed to the parking
spot they wanted.

For a while, it was great fun to sneak into
the drive-in by turning off car lights and driving in through the
exits. This didn't last long as the owners got wise to
this and put in spikes at the exits. If a car drove over the
spikes from the wrong directions the tires were immediately
flattened!

At the peak of the late 50's for America's
Drive-ins there were over 40 Drive-ins operating in the
state of Nebraska. However, since that time 93% of them
are no longer in existence. They have been closed down or
demolished. Currently there are only 3 Drive-ins remaining
in operation in Nebraska.

Kearney Drive-in opened
in 1950 and is the oldest of Nebraska's remaining
outdoor cinemas . It is the largest of the
remaining Drive-ins in Nebraska and has a capacity for 400 cars. Audio for the
movies' soundtrack is provided by the traditional Drive-in
speakers as well as a local radio
signal. The Drive-in is open seasonally May -Labor
Day.
Double features are shown seven nights a week. .

Starlite Drive (402-887-5021)Highway 275 East
Neligh, Nebraska 68756

Starlite Drive-in opened in 1952, it is a single screen venue and has a
capacity for 300 cars. Some of the old traditional Drive-in pole
speakers remain there, but are there only for nostalgia.
Audio for the movies' soundtrack is provided by a local vicinity
radio broadcast. The Drive-in is open April-September. Double
features are shown three nights a week - Friday, Saturday and
Sunday.

Sandhills Drive-in (308-762-2913)2617 Country Route 57 (7 miles east of town)Alliance, Nebraska
69301

Sandhills Drive-in opened in 1994
and is the newest of Nebraska's remaining Drive-ins. It is a
single screen venue and has a capacity for 250 cars. Sandhills
Drive-in is open seasonally, June -September.

Like the milkman, and paperboy, the
drive-in theater has almost become a relic of the past! Those
of us who grew up in Hastings during the fifties still remember our
excitement when Hastings Drive-in opened.